Surveyors claim the property market may be stabilising after a rise in buyer demand for the first time since November 2016.

The RICS UK Residential Market Survey for June found that 10% more respondents saw buyer interest rise rather than fall, while newly agreed sales were positive for the first time in ten months.

Surveyors were positive about sales improving over the next three and 12 months, but the RICS warned that agency stock was still at record lows, while 24% more said appraisals were lower than last year.

Surveyors were also asked an extra question about the new-build premium. The majority of contributors (52%) stated that this was around 5% to 10% on a UK-wide basis, and a little higher in London.

When asked whether the premium has changed over the past year, the majority of contributors reported no change overall at a national level. In London, a third of contributors said the premium had narrowed.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist for RICS, said: “The latest data provides further evidence of the sales market settling down, but I don’t get the impression from the insight provided by contributors that this is fuelling hope of a significantly more active market going forward.

“Many of the factors that have provided a challenge during the first half of the year remain unresolved.”